Learning In South Africa Research Articles

Alcohol use amongst learners in rural high school in South Africa.

BackgroundDrinking behaviour by adolescents is a significant public health challenge nationally and internationally. Alcohol use has serious challenges that continue to deprive adolescents of their normal child growth and development. Drinking is associated with dangers that include fighting, crime, unintentional accidents, unprotected sex, violence and others.AimThe aim of the study is to investigate drinking patterns, and factors contributing to drinking, amongst secondary school learners in South Africa.MethodThe sample included 177 male (46.6%) and 206 female (53.4%) respondents in the age range from 15–23 years, selected by stratified random sampling.ResultsThe results indicated that 35.5% of male and 29.7% of female respondents used alcohol. Both male and female respondents consumed six or more alcohol units (binge drinking) within 30 days; on one occasion the consumption was 17.5% and 15.9% respectively. It was found that alcohol consumption increases with age, 32.2% of 15–17 year-olds and 53.2% of 18–20 year-olds consumed different types of alcohol. It was deduced that 28.9% respondents reported that one of the adults at home drank alcohol regularly, and 9.3% reported that both their parents drank alcohol daily. It was found that 27.6% of the respondents agreed that friends made them conform to drinking. The tenth and eleventh grade reported 15.2% of male and 13.9% of female respondents were aware that alcohol can be addictive.ConclusionThis study found that age, gender, parental alcohol use and peer pressure were found to be the major contributing factors to alcohol use amongst learners Prevention campaigns such as introducing the harmful effects of alcohol use amongst learners are of utmost importance in reducing alcohol use amongst learners in South Africa.

The Effect of Sense of Meaning in the First-year of Study on Throughput at an Institution of Higher Learning in South Africa

The Effect of Sense of Meaning in the First-year of Study on Throughput at an Institution of Higher Learning in South Africa

English Language Proficiency as a Predictor of Academic Achievement among Primary English First Additional Language Learners in South Africa

English Language Proficiency as a Predictor of Academic Achievement among Primary English First Additional Language Learners in South Africa

The Effect of Sense of Meaning in the First-year of Study on Throughput at an Institution of Higher Learning in South Africa

The paper evaluates the relationship between sense of meaning and throughput rate with a random sample of alumnae (N=101) from a university of technology, in South Africa, (age range = 27 to 30 yea...

“You don’t look like a dancer!”: Gender and disability politics in the arena of dance as performance and as a tool for learning in South Africa

abstractThis briefing interrogates disability and its activist and artistic engagement with (contemporary) dance by looking at the legacies of current integrated/disabled dance programmes and companies Candoco in the United Kingdom and Remix in South Africa. This briefing links feminist engagement with critical dance studies to break male codes of reception and assumed hegemonic ‘correct’ dancing bodies, with disability studies and the politics around representations of ‘wellness’. A gendered case study of the politics and process of working in a performance and dance educational environment with young disabled dancers in a programme run by myself and FLATFOOT DANCE COMPANY in Durban called LeftFeetFIRST! is shared. The core argument is that dance's engagement with disability, under the right circumstances, can be a liberatory pedagogy.

Community engagement as the organic link with the street: Creating a learning community between the academy and homeless people in Tshwane

Does the current community engagement project, of the Department of Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology at the University of South Africa (UNISA), respond to the conceptual discourse on community engagement? Informed by this question this article’s objective is two-pronged. Firstly, an attempt is made to locate the project’s beginning in a proper historical perspective by engaging the initial ministry of the Department with homeless people. The narrative about the work of a Mennonite couple is told by structuring it around the dimensions of agency (identification or insertion), context analysis, strategies for mission and theological reflection or in simple terms, the reading of the Bible. Secondly, this article proceeds by subjecting both the initial ministry with homeless people and the community engagement project, in its current form, to the scrutiny of three high ranking publications from the Higher Education Quality Committee in collaboration with JET Education Services, the Council on Higher Education and a handbook on service learning in South Africa on the conceptual clarification of service learning and community engagement. As the documents reveal some difference of opinion amongst the experts, the bottom-line is that unless the interaction between the academy and the community (homeless people) is a consistent, sustainable, reciprocal and mutual process aimed at creating a genuine learning community, the project is called into question. A further issue is that the engagement between the parties must find reflection in what is taught – students or learners are to benefit from this – and researched.

An Exploratory Study into Menstrual Hygiene Management amongst Rural High School for Girls in the North West Province, South Africa

Menstruation remains a taboo subject and presents many challenges to girl learners in South Africa. Cultural taboos about menstruation also have a negative impact on the dignity, school participation and health of girl learners. This study explores the menstrual hygiene practices and knowledge of girls at 10 rural government high schools in the North West Province. The study focuses on themes related to knowledge, practices, beliefs, and challenges related to menstrual hygiene management (MHM) and the use of the menstrual cup. The findings identified a knowledge deficit on MHM amongst girl learners between the knowledge base of girls and the information reportedly taught in schools by educators and passed on by parents. The inadequate toilet facilities and knowledge deficit on MHM contributes to school absenteeism.

Cognition and the Language of Learning in South Africa: A Grade 10 Economics Perspective

In South Africa an increasing number of learners are taught through the medium of English. Limited English proficiency (LEP) learners who enter classes where English is the language of learning, encounter serious problems in coping with their academic work. These learners have usually acquired informal, colloquial language or Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS), but lack Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP). The primary aim of this article is to explore the language dilemma which Grade ten LEP learners' experience. From these findings, recommendations are made concerning ways in which educators can support English language acquisition in the context of the learning areas for which they are responsible. In this study the focus is on LEP learners in the Economics classroom. Although Economics has its own "language" or terminology, concepts are explained in English by the educator, as it is the language of learning. The researcher is a lecturer in the methodology of Economics, and became aware of the language problems of LEP learners while evaluating his student educators in the school setting.

Soweto's Islands of Learning: Morris Isaacson and Orlando High Schools Under Bantu Education, 1958–1975

Orlando High School and Morris Isaacson High School, the two most famous high schools in Soweto, offer a valuable lens into the shifting culture of teaching and learning in South Africa's urban public schooling. These two schools are best known for their role in the 1976 Soweto uprising, but I move away from this aspect of their history and, instead, analyse them as institutions of learning and as crucial generators of Soweto's professional elite over several decades. This article focuses on the schools as they operated under the Bantu Education system from the late 1950s until the mid 1970s. During the 1960s the Nationalist government was hostile to the very notion of African secondary schooling in the cities. Yet in spite of an authoritarian and repressive state bureaucracy, a lack of resources, and overcrowding, the schools established themselves as credible institutions of learning. Under the firm leadership of T.W. Kambule and Lekgau Mathabathe, they attracted talented, dedicated staff and highly motivated students. Working within the state system inevitably aroused suspicions and tensions; nevertheless, the schools offered the most likely avenue for ordinary Sowetan families to achieve some form of professional upward mobility.

The Influence of Information Quality, System Quality and Service Quality on Student’s Self-Efficacy at Institutions of Higher Learning in South Africa

The notion of improving student self-efficacy at institutions of higher learning has become a priority matter. There is a growing realization among institutions of higher learning that one way of achieving this, is by encouraging learners to make the best out of information technology use. It is therefore in this regards that this paper seeks to investigate the influence of information quality, system quality and service quality on student’s self-efficacy at institutions of higher learning in South Africa. To address this dearth, this study proposed three hypotheses that were validated using a sample of 271 university students in the Gauteng province. The findings indicated that there are positive relationships between the posited research variables. Managerial implications of the findings are discussed and limitations and future research directions are indicated. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n27p974

Why Did It Happen to Us? Confronting the Individualization of Racism in a Historically White Afrikaans Institute of Higher Learning

This paper is an attempt by three lecturers at a Historically White Afrikaans institution of higher learning in South Africa to reflect critically on their experiences with regard to accusations of racism levelled against them. The accusations mentioned may be viewed as the possible aftermath of the Reitz incident in which four White Afrikaans university students were accused of racism. Through narratives, the writers outline their accounts of events which transpired during a very turbulent time at this university. The ‘dark period’ incident (pseudonym) as our story is known, sparked an outcry from us as lecturers and a student-lecturer to express our portrayal and interpretations of events within the context of the transformation at our institutions. This we envisaged, might bring about closure to the whole debacle regarding our experiences of the ’dark period’ incident in which accusations of racism were made against us. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n27p1207

The Role of School Governing Bodies in Underperforming Schools of Western Cape: A Field Based Study

The schools in South Africa have been facing immense challenges for a long period of time especially after independence in 1994. The School Governing Bodies (SGBs) play a major role in the administration and finance functions of the school and its development however, school governing bodies are sometimes used by individuals and organised groups to discriminate against learners in South Africa. It is found that some SGBs are not working properly because they do not have the necessary skills and they are not sure about their roles and responsibilities. This indeed happens in poorer communities, where people have few resources and many cannot read and write. The situation is made worse by the fact that some of the schools do not get enough money, support and training from the government. A strong sentiment amongst teachers was that the core of the problem of ineffectual SGBs was located in bad leadership and management. In light of the above challenges an attempt is made in this article to discuss the definition of the role of the School Governing Bodies (SGBs) in terms of the South African Schools Act. The article also focuses on the findings that were generated through responses to a number of questions around the theme of school governing bodies that were included in the questionnaires administered to principals and teachers. Principals are, in terms of the School Act of 1996, ex officio members of the SGB. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n27p353

Implementation Dilemma of the Concept ‘Research-Intensive University’ at Institutions of Higher Learning: A Critical Analysis

Critical theory is used in trying to understand the concept of research-intensive universities and the moral collapse of teacher training institutions in higher education. What makes critical scholarship different from interpretive scholarship is that it interprets the acts and the symbols of society in order to understand the ways in which various social groups are oppressed. This article is driven by the researchers’ own experiences at institutions of higher learning in South Africa, as well as literature review. Moral reasoning is important within the professions because of the social status of professions. Claims by various groups about fairness of college access are central to the public discourse about equal treatment. The pressure to publish is keenly felt by all education academics, so considerable tension could arise over who is involved in initial teacher training. There is a danger that training quality teachers may be compromised as research-intensive universities will pay more attention to research at the expense of teaching and learning DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n27p35

Quality Management of Short Courses at Higher Education Institutions in South Africa: A Comparative Study

The Higher Education Quality Committee (HEQC) conducted its first cycle of institutional audit exercises from 2004 – 2009 at private and public universities in South Africa. This study follows on the HEQC audit panel’s report, with reference to the offering of short courses (SCs) by Higher Education Institutions (HEI’s). The HEQC informed some institutions that the quality assurance system of SCs is not on par with the requirements of the HEQC. Therefore, it does not meet the minimum standards for an effective quality management system for SCs. It is imperative for institutions to conceptualise the quality management of SCs and to develop a system that ensures ongoing improvement. This study addresses this gap by conceptualising the quality management of SCs on national level in higher education. The study draws on good practices on national level that can inform the refinement of the existing quality assurance system for SCs at HEI’s. The empirical study was conducted with public institutions of higher learning in South Africa. Quantitative data were collected from all 23 public institutions of higher learning. analysed and interpreted during this study. The study revealed that it is imperative for higher education institutions to develop quality assurance systems that are based on cyclical processes of ongoing improvement. The study highlights the value of the principles of Total Quality Management, the notion of continuous improvement, self-evaluation and external monitoring. Recommendations in this study suggest that HEI’s should conduct further institutional benchmarking exercises with the five institutions that received commendations and full delegations, in order to develop a conceptual model for understanding and enhancing its SC offerings. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n23p390

Exploring the Pedagogical Content Knowledge for Teaching Probability in Middle School: A South African Case Study

This paper reports on an exploration into in-service teachers' pedagogical content knowledge required for the delivery of lessons in probability. The section on probability is taught in Mathematical Literacy to the middle school learners in South Africa. As a theoretical framework the work initiated in the nineteen eighties was sought. This paper adopted a refined framework into domains of pedagogical knowledge. The four domains are: Common Content Knowledge; Specialised Content Knowledge; Knowledge of Content and Students as well as Knowledge of Content and Teaching which are defined and applied to show their necessity in a teaching situation. Examples of tasks from an open ended questionnaire were discussed and identification of the pedagogical content knowledge on probability was made. Teachers' written responses were collected and analyzed to verify or refute suggested strands of knowledge provided earlier. The written responses were from in-service teachers (n = 86) who were studying towards an Advanced Certificate in Education (an upgrading qualification) at a South African university.

Assessing the Value of and Contextual and Cultural Acceptability of the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) in Evaluating Mental Health Problems in HIV/AIDS Affected Children

ABSTRACTThe Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is an internationally recognized tool. This study aims to evaluate the cultural and contextual acceptability, and potential uses of the SDQ amongst Sesotho learners in South Africa. This paper uses reports from ten teachers based on their experience of using the SDQ. Teachers found the SDQ contextually relevant and easy to administer. They felt it assisted them in understanding the challenges learners were facing and to develop better relationships with them. Very few concerns were raised. The lack of referral options for affected learners and their own lack of appropriate skills generated frustration.

Factors that affect South African Reading Literacy Achievement: evidence from prePIRLS 2011

This study aims to identify factors that predict reading literacy achievement among Grade 4 learners in South Africa by utilising aspects of Carroll’s model of school learning. The study draws on the preProgress in International Reading Literacy Study (prePIRLS) 2011 data, which places South African Grade 4 learners’ results substantially below the international centre point of 500 at 461 (SE = 3.7). Selected items from the prePIRLS 2011 learner, parent and teacher questionnaires were used in a two-level model to determine the effect of learner aptitude, opportunity to learn and quality of instructional events on reading literacy achievement. The results point to the statistical significance of engaged reading and cultivating motivation for reading among learners from an early age, specifically through parental involvement in introducing early literacy activities as foundation of reading literacy by school-going age. Other results provide evidence for the importance of the value of reading across the curriculum not confined to formal reading lessons only. The teaching of reading comprehension skills and strategies is identified as a significant predictor of reading literacy achievement, instruction of which should form an integral part of teaching reading in the classroom. Keywords : Carroll’s model of School Learning, contextual factors, prePIRLS 2011, reading literacy achievement

Happiness among first-year students at a comprehensive tertiary institution: An exploratory study

The 1970s saw a significant increase in the volume of research on individuals’ subjective experience of well-being. The subjective well-being of university students has received less attention, however. Student well-being is important, given the widespread concern over the high dropout rates at institutions of higher learning in South Africa (Council of Higher Education, 2013; Van Zyl, 2010). The paper adds to the existing body of literature through an exposition on the possible influence of variables forthcoming from the literature, on the overall subjective well-being of first-year economics students at a comprehensive university. Variables that displayed a significant and positive contribution to subjective well-being were first-year and extended-degree students, the university being the institution of choice, feeling at home, knowing exactly how the university functions, and watching or participating in sport. Variables that were found to be significant with a negative contribution to subjective well-being levels were: worries about tests, studying less than 10 hours per week and, interestingly, living on campus.

Exploring the utility of the DAT-S in evaluating learner aptitudes in first and second language English speaking Grade 8 learners

AbstractThe Differential Aptitude Test Form S (DAT-S) is intended to guide learners in their subject choices and occupational direction by determining their strengths and weaknesses in different areas. The test was developed in South Africa and standardised with Afrikaans and English speaking learners. Learners in South Africa are from linguistically diverse backgrounds but the language of learning and teaching in many schools is English. The relevance of the English version of the DAT-S in the multi-linguistic context of an English medium school was investigated, to determine whether it was equally well correlated with academic achievement in English first language (EL1) and English non-first language (EL2) learners in Grade 8. The results showed significant differences in the performance of EL1 and EL2 learners on all DAT-S subtests. While the DAT-S correlated with EL2 learners' academic results, the pattern of correlations was different from that of their EL1 peers. Thus, the DAT-S may not provide accu...

Every picture tells a story: Epistemological access and knowledge

The term ‘epistemological access’ has been increasingly used in scholarly publications on higher education learning in South Africa and elsewhere recently. This paper reviews the context and lineaments of the term in the work of philosopher Wally Morrow and its take-up by other scholars, and sets out to elaborate the conceptual underpinnings of the notion, outlining three possible answers to the question, ‘what is epistemological access affording access to?’ and proposing a fourth as a fruitful way to deploy the term in future scholarly work on higher education learning which seeks to stipulate what graduates should learn, know and be able to do.